Alexandria, VA – Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5016, the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act of 2015, which provides the historical legislative vehicle for adjustments to federal employee pay scales. The bill does not include a federal pay raise for 2015, but does not preclude one, deferring the decision to President Obama, who proposed a 1 percent pay raise in his FY15 budget. In response, Joseph A. Beaudoin, president of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE), released the following statement:

“Today, federal employees moved one step closer to a modest, one percent pay raise for the second year in a row. That certainly provides reason for thanks, and a sense of relief that Congress may be moving away from using federal employees as their personal piggybank. But it is still a step too short, lagging behind the 1.8 percent increase recorded in the private-sector.

“Prior to this year’s one percent raise, federal employees endured a three-year pay freeze, and new hires now contribute an extra 3.6 percent to their retirement without any corresponding increase in benefits. These measures have only widened the already significant gap between private-sector and federal pay, making it more difficult to recruit and retain the best and brightest into public service.

“At the very least, both Congress and the President should resume the policy of providing federal employee pay increases in line with the private-sector. Otherwise, our federal government will fail to remain a competitive employer for the highly-qualified workers needed to function effectively.”

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Cost Index (ECI), private-sector wages and salaries increased by 1.8 percent for the 12-month period ending September 2013. Historically, this figure has been the basis for adjustments to federal pay scales. Last year, the Federal Salary Council found that private-sector pay was 35 percent higher than federal pay for comparable jobs.

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The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) one of America’s oldest and largest associations, was founded in 1921 with the mission of protecting the earned rights and benefits of America’s active and retired federal workers. The largest federal employee/retiree organization, NARFE represents the interests of nearly five million current and future federal annuitants, spouses and survivors.